I'm overhauling the PTO take off shaft and housing and want to replace the bearings but have come across something I've not seen before. When I measure the bearing (main front end roller) it is 44.5 mm wide by 14mm deep with a centre of 19mm for the shaft. When I look for this size in the UK bearing suppliers charts I cannot find a match. There are also signs that there is a gap (assuming the current bearing is correct) between the bearing and the main circlip retaining the main bearing of 3.5mm.

Referring to the parts list it shows a seal of a design that cannot possibly be correct for 3.5mm.

Can anyone throw any light on what the correct bearing size should be .

The front bearing (Bolens part # 1185605) is a pretty common 6203 series bearing. You should be able to easily source a SKF 6203-ZZ bearing or equivalent. Just remove one seal to match the OEM bearing so you can grease it. Not sure that I follow you on the "gap" problem you have. Are you missing the 1721590 nylon seal washer out front? Also, the 1185649 retaining rings are not a standard hardware size. They are 0.080" thick (or 2.01mm) Here is a good look at the part diagram. Make sure that everything is installed exactly as it is shown in the diagram.

Edit for correction: Correct bearing is a 1635-2RS with one seal removed.

As ClassicBolens said, it's a common size bearing, but it's an inch-series bearing, not Metric. It should be 1.75" OD x 0.75" ID x 0.50" thick. It should have a seal on one side only, as the PTO is lubed with grease via a Zerk fitting on the side of the housing. The sealed side of the bearing should face out and the open side in.

Thanks for the replies guys. I searched the sites for the given SKF number and the sizes don't tie up plus the given assembly diagram. Based on the assembly diagram the outer nylon seal would seat on the bearing circling which from a base engineering principle cannot be true. No engineer would specify that a nylon outer seal would face against a circling.

SKF 6203 ZZ does not correlate to the required size and when I search in imperial the searches come up as not found.

HOwever all is not lost, I have found a housing seal on e bay today so just hope the P&P charges are ok. Have also rejuvenated the main bearing by soaking in penetrating oils for 24hrs and then spinning up with an air blower re cleaning and repacking with grease.

Assembly sequence and bearing dimensions still don't make any sense though !

Thanks for the replies guys. I searched the sites for the given SKF number and the sizes don't tie up plus the given assembly diagram. Based on the assembly diagram the outer nylon seal would seat on the bearing circling which from a base engineering principle cannot be true. No engineer would specify that a nylon outer seal would face against a circling.

SKF 6203 ZZ does not correlate to the required size and when I search in imperial the searches come up as not found.

HOwever all is not lost, I have found a housing seal on e bay today so just hope the P&P charges are ok. Have also rejuvenated the main bearing by soaking in penetrating oils for 24hrs and then spinning up with an air blower re cleaning and repacking with grease.

Assembly sequence and bearing dimensions still don't make any sense though !

Thanks for the replies.

My apologies. The 6203 bearing is wrong. That's what I get for going from memory (which I think is slowly fading)

The assembly goes together just as it is shown in the diagram, with the exception of the large internal retaining ring. It holds the ball bearing in place, then the seal washer goes on (heat it in boiling water to assist installation) then the 1185649 retaining ring holds it in place.

The assembly goes together just as it is shown in the diagram, with the exception of the large internal retaining ring. It holds the ball bearing in place, then the seal washer goes on (heat it in boiling water to assist installation) then the 1185649 retaining ring holds it in place.

Thanks for that. I've ordered the bearing now from Simply bearings, that's who I normally use. The diagram is somewhat misleading as it indicates the large circlip goes on top of the nylon seal. I had worked it out that it could not possibly be as shown. As it happens Rick had a seal for sale so have bought that.

When I'm overseas next I'll get a load of them made as they seem quite rare.